Manning Attorney: "We Won the Battle But Not the War"

By Scott Galindez, Reader Supported News

30 July 13

radley Manning's defense attorney, David Coombs, addressed supporters following the verdict in Manning's court-martial. "We won the battle but not the war. Bradley is not out of the fire yet," Coombs said in response to Judge Col. Denise Lind finding Manning not guilty of aiding the enemy. The judge also found Manning not guilty of leaking the Granai airstrike video, which was one of the espionage charges.

Many supporters were in tears, with mixed emotions.

Coombs expressed gratitude for the support from what he called the "truth battalion." He went on to say that he has invested three years of his life in seeking justice for Bradley and could not have done it with the support and donations from the "truth squad." He said he was excited about the next phase and is ready to go.

Judge Lind's decision to avoid setting a dangerous precedent by convicting Manning on the aiding the enemy charge will evoke a sigh of relief from news organizations and civil liberties groups who had feared a guilty verdict would send a chilling message to journalists and would-be whistleblowers.

The judge also found Manning not guilty of leaking an encrypted copy of a video of a U.S airstrike in the Farah province of Aghanistan, in which many civilians died. Manning's defense team had argued vociferously that he was not the source of this video, though the soldier did admit to later disclosure of an unencrypted version of the video and related documents.

Judge Lind also accepted Manning's version of several of the key dates in the WikiLeaks disclosures, and took some of the edge off other less serious charges. But the overriding toughness of the verdict remains: Manning was found guilty in their entirety of 17 out of the 22 counts against him, and of an amended version of four others.

Michael McKee of the Bradley Manning Support Network expressed relief that Manning was found not guilty of the most serious charge, aiding the enemy, and told supporters that there is a long way to go and that they must press on.

Medea Benjamin of Code Pink said that it saddened her that "the charges brought against Manning were so severe that even without 'aiding the enemy,' Bradley is facing 136 years in prison." She expressed some relief that he was acquitted of aiding the enemy but was still "disgusted with a system that destroys the future of a 25-year-old for doing his democratic duty."

Gerry Condon, a national board member for Veterans for Peace, also expressed mixed emotions. While he too was relieved that Bradley was found not guilty of the most serious charge, he was alarmed that he was found guilty of 19 other counts, including five from the Espionage Act.

Condon said that a conviction on the aiding the enemy charge would have "sent a chilling message to soldiers and the media." He went on to draw parallels between Manning and Edward Snowden, saying it is "troubling that while the government wants to know everything about us, they don't want us to know what they are doing."

Veterans for Peace will raise their voices even louder, demanding that Manning not spend even one more day in jail.

Unlike in civilian court, the sentencing phase of the trial will be lengthy. The prosecution has submitted a list of 20 witnesses, and the defense is expected to do the same. During this phase of the trial, Manning's motives will be hotly contested. The sentencing phase begins tomorrow.